The Vatican’s custodian of religious sites in the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, has requested that Israel’s President Shimon Peres defend Christian holy sites in Israel from vandalism by Jewish extremists.

This request follows an incident in February in which two churches were defaced with graffiti in Jerusalem. Peres has promised that Israeli police will redouble their efforts to protect the Christian holy sites and will also find the perpetrators and bring them to justice. Peres apologized on behalf of the Israeli government and expressed his hope for a “continuing life of tolerance and mutual respect in Jerusalem and all over the country.”